Machine for coating tubes



' April 2, 1929. E. CONT! MACHINE FOR COATING TUBES Filed Dec. 8, 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet I l I I llllllLrrrllllll Ill W gamma $5 GbtoM LW flll fvl% Qg- April 2, 1929. E. CONT] 1,707,711

MACHINE FOR COATING TUBES I Filed Dec. 3. 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Qwweutoz I Gum A 'f Patented Apr. 2, 1929.

UNITED STATES 1,707,711 PATENT OFFICE.

EUGENE CONTI, OF GLIEFSID'E PARK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGN OR TO ALEXANDER HERZ, OF NEW ROCHELLE, NEW YORK.

MACHINE FOR COATING TUBES.

Application filed. December 8, 1922.

This invention relates to a machine for coating tubes and is particularly adapted for use in coating drinking tubes with waterproof material.

The principal object of the invention resides in the provision of a machine wherein the tubes will be properly coated in such a short period of time as to render the machine commercially successful.

I have illustrated the preferred embodiment of my invention in the drawings, but it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to that embodiment as it is obvious that manychanges in the details of construction maybe made without departing from the spirit of the invention or exceeding the scope of the claims.

Figure 1 is an elevation of the embodiment illustrating, particularly, the means for elevating the tube carrier;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view on the line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view on the line 33 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a fragmental vertlcal sectional view on the line 44 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a detail plan View showing the means for locking the tube container retalning bar; and 30 Figure 6 is a detail of the tube carrier retaining lock looking at right angles to Figure 5.

The machine in the illustrated preferred embodiment comprises a container or tank 35 10, which is preferably of cylindrical form and is at its lower portion, adapted to contain the coating material. The lower portion of this tank is surrounded by a heating jacket- 11, which has a connection 12 with a suitable source of heat exchange medium, such as steam, and is adapted to maintain the coating material, which preferably is paraflin, n a liquid state. The lower end of this tank is also provided with a drain port 13 by means of which the coating material 14 may be drawn off.

In order that the tubes may be dipped in the coating material 14 and then freed of the excess of such material so that the coat will be even and the passages through the tubes unobstructed, I have provided the following mechanism which includes a container carrier adapted to receive tube containers successively placed therein. Each of these containers 15 is rectangular and has all of its Serial No. 605,743.

sides perforated to permit the coating fluid to passtherethrough. One side of each contamer is, however, removable to permit the tubes to be placed in and removed from the container. Each of the containers is of such dimensions that it will accommodate a group of tubes arranged horizontally.

The container carrier includes a cage having top and bottom plates 16 and 17, and rods 18 and 19, which extend between the plates and space the same apart. The rod 19 is pivoted at 20 to thelower platel? and is adapted to be swung about the pivot downwardly to permit the insertion of the tube containers. When, however, the rod is swung into its vertical position and locked to the top plate 16 it completes the cage and retains the tube container in position within the cage. The free end of this rod 19 is locked against a shoulder 21 of the top plate 16 by suitable locking mechanism such as a pivoted latch member 22, which in turn is retained in its latching position by a resilient means such as a spring 23, and which may be disengaged from the rod 19 by themanual operation of a handle 24. A positive locking member 25 is pivoted at 26 at right angles to the pivot of the latch member 22, and is adapted to be swung into engagement with the latch mem ber to force it into engagement withthe upper end of the rod 19 and to force the latter against the shoulder 21. This block 25 is provided with a handle 27 for its manual operation and is limited in its movement to locking position by a shoulder 28.

This container cage is rotatably mounted on bearings 30 and 31 carried by upper and lower plates 32 and 33. These plates are held in fixed spaced relation by rods 34. Extending from the top to the bottom of the tank 10 is a pair of standards 35 which pass through the plates 32 and 33 and on which the plates slide vertically.

In order that the tube container carrier may be raised and lowered so that the coutainer with the tubes therein will be submerged in the liquid coating material or raised to the space above the surface of the latter, I have mounted a shaft 36 on the top of the tank, which shaft carries a pair of sprockets 37. Chains 38 pass over these sprockets and are attached at 39 to the top plate 33. These chains pass over a second pair of spockets 40, and have counter-weights 41 attached to their ends. This shaft 36 is rotated in either direction to raise or lower the tube container carrier and is assisted in its movement by the counter-weights 41. The shaft 36 is rotated in any suitable manner, preferably by a manually operable crank handle 42, which through shafts 43 and 44 and intermeshing pairs of pinions 45 and 46 causes the rotation of the shaft.

In order that the motion of the carrier in its upward direction may be gradually arrested I have provided shock absorbers which in the illustrated embodiment take the form of springs 47 encircling the standards 35 and disposed between the upper plate 33 of the carrier and the top of the tank.

The carrier is sustained in its uppermost posit-ion with the tube container disposed above the surface of the coating liquid and is automatically locked in this position by a latch 48 which is pivoted at 49 and the latch end of which is held in the path of movement of the upper plate 33 of the carrier by suitable means such as a spring 50. The end of this latch 48 is provided with a cam 48' which is engaged by the edge of the upper plate 33 of the carrier in the upward movement of the latter to move the latch out of the path of movement of the plate so that when the plate passes beyond the latch end the spring 50 will automatically. cause the latch to engage the edge of the plate. To this latch a manually operable rod 51 is attached which extends to the front of the tank 10, through which the latch may be disengaged from the plate 33. In order that the tube container may be rapidly rotated to free the coated tubes of the excess coating material I have provided a clutch member 52 which is rigid with the plate 16 and which moves vertically with the container carrier and is in its uppermost position adapted to engage a complemental clutch member 53 on the lower end of a shaft 54 which shaft is rovided at its upper end with a beveled pinion 55. This pinion 55 engages a driving pinion 56 on a shaft 57 which latter shaft is actuated by suitable means, such as a belt and pulley 58. V

The upper portion of the tank 10 is provided with a door 59 having a suitable gasket 6O thereon to seal it. This door is so located with respect to the carrier when the latter is in its uppermost position as to give access to the carrier for inserting and removin'g tube containers.

In operation a container is inserted in the cage through the door 59 and the cage locked so that the lateral displacement of the container will be impossible, the carrier at this time being in its raised position. The latch 48 is manually disengaged from the upper plate 33 of the carrier and the shaft 36 actuated to lower the carrier into the heated liquid coating material. The container and the tubes therein are permitted to remain in the coating liquid for a suflicient length of time to insure the proper coating of the tubes on the inside as well as on the outside. The shaft 36 is then rotated in the opposite direction and the carrier raised to such a position that the tube container will he in a space above the surface of the liquid, the air in which space, however, is heated by the coating solution. When the carrier reaches its uppermost position it is automatically locked by the latch 48 so that the clutch members 52 and 53 are properly engaged and will remain so during the subsequent operation of the machine. The rotation of the shaft 54 by its actuating means will in turn rotate the container cage and the container therein so that the excess coating solution on the tubes will be thrown off, the coating material having remained in a liquid state due to the high temperature of the air in the upper part of the tank 10.

1 It will be seen from the foregoing description that I have provided a machine wherein the drinking tubes will be thoroughly coated and will befreed of the excess coating material while the latter is still in a liquid state. Furthermore I have so constructed the operating mechanism that its various operations may be carried out by the operator with the greatest facility and so that the various parts will positively function in the intended manner.

I claim: v

1. In av machine of the class described a tank, spaced vertical standards arranged within the tank, a tube container carrier mounted for vertical movement on said standards, said carrier including a rotatable container cage, means for raising and lowering said carrier, and means for rotating said cage.

2. In a machine of the class described a tank, spaced vertical standards arranged within the tank, a tube container carrier mounted for vertical movement on said standards, said carrier including a rotatable container cage, means for raising and lower ing said carrier, and means for rotating said cage, said cage including a pair of spaced plates, rods extending between and maintaining said plates in spaced relation, and a locking rod to maintain a container within the cage.

3. In a machine of the class described a tank, a cage adapted to receive tube contain ers located within the tank, means for rotating the cage, means for raising and lowering said cage into the positions for engaging and disengaging said rotating means, and means for locking the cage in raised position.

4. In a machine of the class described a tank, a pair of spaced standards located within the tank, a tube container carrier having a pair of spaced plates slidably mounted on said standards, a container cage rotatably mounted betweensaid plates, '9.

clutch member rigid with said cage, a complemental clutch member mounted at the top of the tank, means for raising and lowering said carrier, and means for locking the carrier in its raised position with the clutch members interengaged.

5. In a machine of the class described a tank, a pair of spaced standards located within the tank, a tube container carrier having a pairof spaced plates slidably mounted on said standards, a container cage rotatably mounted between said plates, a clutch member rigid with said cage, a complemental clutch member mounted at the top of the tank, means for raising and lowering said carrier, means for locking the carrier in its raised position with the clutch members interengaged, and means for gradually arresting the motion of the carrierin its upward direction.

6. In a machine of the class described, a

tank having a heating jacket around the lower portion thereof, a pair of spaced standards within the tank, a tube container carrier slidably mounted on said standards and including a pair of spaced plates, and a container cage rotatably mounted between said plates, means for raising and lowering the carrier, and means for rotating the cage when the carrier is in its raised position.

7. In a machine of the class described a tank having a heating acket surrounding the lower portion thereof, and a door above said jacket, a rotatable tube container cage, means for rotating the cage, means for raising and lowering the cage having an operating handle adjacent the door, and means for locking the cage in its raised position, said lastmentioned means having an operating rod extending to a position adjacent the door.

8. In a machine of the class described a tank having a heating jacket surrounding the lower portion of the same, a pair of spaced standards in the tank, a tube container carrier including a pair of spaced plates slidably mounted on the standards, a container cage rotatably mounted between the plates, means for raising and lowering the carrier including a shatt having a pair of sprocket wheels thereon, chains passing over said sprocket wheels and each attached at one end to the carrier and having a counterweight on its other end, a manually operable.

handle for rotating said shaft connected to the latter by a train of gears, means automatically operable to lock the carrier in its raised position, means for gradually arresting the upward motion of the carrier, a clutch member rigid with the container cage,-a complemental clutch member adapted to engage the first-mentioned clutch member when the carrier is in its raised position, and means for rotating the last-mentioned clutch member.

9. In a machine of the class described a tank, a tube container carrier mounted for vertical movement in said tank, said carrier including a rotatable container cage, and means for rotating the cage, said cage including a pair of spaced plates having a plurality of bars extending thercbetween one of said bars being pivoted to one of the plates and adapted to engage the other plate, a latch for maintaining the free end of the bar in engagement with the latter plate, and a locking member for said latch.

10. In a machine of the class described, a tank, a cage arranged to receive the tubes located within the tank, means for raising and lowering said cage, bearings for engaging said cage at the top and bottom thereof when in its uppermost position to support it for rotation within the tank, and means for rotating said cage in its raised position only.

11. In a machine of the class described, a tank, a tube container carrier mounted for vertical movement in said tank, bearings therefor engageable with said carrier when in its uppermost position to hold said carrier in position during rotation, and means for rotating said carrier when in its uppermost position only.

12. In a machine of the class described, a tank having means for heating liquid in the lower portion thereof, a tube carrier rotatably mounted in saidtank, means to raise and lower said carrier, and means to rotate said carrier including a clutch operative only when said tube carrier is in elevated position.

13. In a machine of the class described a tank, a rotatable cage within the tank, means for raising and lowering the cage, and means entirely within the tank for locking the cage in raised position.

14. In a machine of the class described, a tank for containing a supply of coating liquid, a rotatable tube carrier mounted in said tank and movable vertically into the liquid in the tank and to a posit-ion above the same, means for rotating said carrier when in elevated position only and a door in the side of said tank to permit access to the carrier when it is in elevated position.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification this 7th day of December, 1922.

EUGENE CONTI. 

